Before the days of social media and smartphone popularity, I remember when people carried photos of their children in wallets and purses. Whenever the topic of kids came up, out came the most recent photo of the youngins. Now, thanks to Mark Zuckerberg, you don’t even have to wait for the topic to come up. […]
I used to always wonder why parents allowed themselves to be financially gouged by companies catering to kids. This year, I found out. For Liam’s birthday, my wife and I decided to take him to a restaurant whose logo features a dancing rat. The commercials are always a hit for him and he’s finally at […]
Before my son was born, I subscribed wholeheartedly to the idea of whooping my kids when I had them. I grew up with Southern parents who fully appreciated the act of “a good beatin’” when rules were broken. I got whooped, my brother got whooped and all my friends got whooped. Sometimes, if your parents […]
One of the most memorable moments I’ve had of my father was on a trip to North Carolina when I was about ten years old to spend time with his side of the family. That summer, my dad let me have my first taste of beer. It was cold and bitter, and it made me […]
It’s still tough. I do have other children, but any Father’s Day without all your kids is tough. I have a 2-year-old that’s filled a big void that was empty in my life. But of course, we can’t replace Trayvon. Just not having my shadow around on Father’s Day, it’s hard, but we get through. […]
Growing up as a preacher’s kid in Washington, DC, I have so many fond memories of my father, the late Rev. Johnny Gill, Sr. He taught me so much and set so many examples for me that I am instilling some of those same principles with my nine year old son, Isaiah. I innately carry […]
When I think of Father’s Day and all the memories as a child, the part that sticks out the most, is that my father was always gone working and representing the country in the Navy and my mother, Shirley, held things down at the crib. They never married. We lived in Orchard Park Projects in […]
When I became a father in 2014, it was an awakening. I finally felt like full fledged ‘adult’ for the first time. Having a daughter made me realize I could no longer turn a blind eye to so much about society that I’d simply been able to ignore up until now because I’d grown up […]
WWE superstars Titus O’Neil and Darren Young may work in Speedos for a living but that doesn’t mean they’re not responsible men. This year, they will be participating in the 2015 Tom Joyner Family Reunion and are donating their talent fees to a nonprofit that supports the “Everything for Dads Foundation.” The two came to wrestling […]
Just because you’re a parent doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy being productive. Since I’m still the gadget junkie that I was before my little nerd was born, I’ve pulled together five indispensable pieces of technology that can aid any mom or dad with the challenge of getting things done. I’ve learned that it’s a […]
Before my son even turned a year old, women fascinated him. Around the time he began interacting with people other than my wife, family and I, he’d smile at any woman that looked in his direction. Men, no matter how nice they were to him, would get either a blank stare or ignored altogether. Once, […]
I’ve always heard from other parents and people that are familiar with young children that kids have a keen sense of the most embarrassing moments to show out. A full-blown meltdown will likely go down at church during prayer or at the grocery store checkout line as a parent fiddles around for coupons. Then there’s […]
